1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to the field of information handling system memory, and more particularly to a system and method for secure information handling system memory.
2. Description of the Related Art
As the value and use of information continues to increase, individuals and businesses seek additional ways to process and store information. One option available to users is information handling systems. An information handling system generally processes, compiles, stores, and/or communicates information or data for business, personal, or other purposes thereby allowing users to take advantage of the value of the information. Because technology and information handling needs and requirements vary between different users or applications, information handling systems may also vary regarding what information is handled, how the information is handled, how much information is processed, stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the information may be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in information handling systems allow for information handling systems to be general or configured for a specific user or specific use such as financial transaction processing, airline reservations, enterprise data storage, or global communications. In addition, information handling systems may include a variety of hardware and software components that may be configured to process, store, and communicate information and may include one or more computer systems, data storage systems, and networking systems.
Increased reliance on information handling systems by individuals and businesses has increased the importance of ensuring ready and secure access to information. Often, end users access information located at secure sites, such as the end user's employer's network or other businesses like financial institutions, through non-secure networks, such as the Internet. Access of secure network sites through non-secure networks provides end users with tremendous convenience; however, it also provides information technology administrators with countless security problems. Enterprise networks are under constant attack from hackers who hope to penetrate security defenses to retrieve valuable enterprise information, perform malicious attacks on enterprise information handling systems or commit outright frauds on enterprise employees and customers. Each time hackers develop new techniques for attacking network security, information technology administrators respond with new security techniques, resulting in a cat-and-mouse game that has become quite expensive for both enterprises and individuals. The expense is often compounded by the complexity found in modern enterprise networks, which typically rely on multiple server information handling systems and storage systems interconnected by switches and routers.
One difficulty in maintaining a secure enterprise network environment is that networks have predictable architectures in which vulnerabilities occur at predictable and known weak spots. For example, information stores attached to a network are typically located in known locations, such as system memory attached to processors or disk storage arrays. These obvious and well-known locations often become the targets for unauthorized users to attack a network. For example, hackers sometimes attempt to “spoof” an information handling system by pretending to be another system that is authorized to retrieve information. By obtaining access to even a limited number of memory locations, a hacker can sometimes retrieve information that provides access to other locations, such as by retrieving passwords or other sensitive codes. Protecting each memory location presents a substantial logistical problem both in the identification of vulnerable locations and the updating of each location as hacker threats change. Further, as complexity is added to network security systems, the risk of down time or other interference with end user network access increases.